Palmes



Dec. 11, 1928. 1,694,763

W. H. BEATTY I CENTRIFUGAL MOLDING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 24, 1927 2Sheets-Sheet l 24 E V TH Attorney Dec. 11, 1928. 11,694,763

w. H. BEATTY CENTRIFUGAL MOLDING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 24, 1927' 2Sheets-Sheet 2 0 w &

' Inventor wfiofleatzlz I Alforn'ey I E 1 rue: as

WILLIAIYI H. IBEAT'IY, OE BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA, ASSIGNOB TO BEATTY PALMERAND IBEATTY, A CQIPARTNEESHIE? COMPOSED' OF N. EIEIKTRY BEATTY, CLARENCEJ.

PALMER, AND "WILLIAM H. BEATTY.

CENTRIF UGAL MOLDING .APZFARATUS.

Application filed. August 24, 1927. Serial No. 215,066.

My invention relates to centrifugal molding machines and has for itsobject the provision of apparatus of the character designated whichshall be simple and rugged in its construction, and which shall embodymeans for readily mounting and removing the molding flask at thebeginning and at the encling of the molding operation.

My invention has more particular relation to centrifugal moldingmachines employing a sand mold with a suitable flask therefor. Inconnection with such apparatus, the molds are first prepared in theflasks, away from the machine, and are then mounted on suitablemechanism for rotating them while the molten metal is being poured andthe casting formed. They are then taken away from the machine for thepurpose of removing the casting while another flask and mold is put inplace for further pouring and casting, It will be obvious that with suchapparatus, the machine should be so designed that the flasks may bereadily mounted and removed from the machine, thereby reducing the timeelement and labor involved in the process. It is accordingly theprincipal object of my invention to provide a machine for accomplishingthe above mentioned purpose, and at the same time simplify theconstruction of such .ma

chines while producing a machine which shall be as rugged or more ruggedthan machines already known to me.

Briefly, my invention comprises a pair of spaced pedestal members havingprovided therein suitable bearings for a pair of idler rollers, onebeing positioned slightly above and to one side of the other, the idlerrollers being so positioned that the flask, when in place, is onlyslightly to the rear of the vertical central plane passing through thelower idler roller and lies entire- 1y to one side of the other idlerroller. A driven roller adapted to drivev the flask by frictionalengagement therewith, is so positioned that its vertical central planeis on the same side of the axis of rotation of the flask as the loweridler roller. The driving roller has a shaft mounted in bearings carriedby, and eccentrically disposed with respect to, a bushing which, inturn, is mounted in suitable bearings in the spaced pedestal-s. A gearis carried by the bushing and meshes with a segmental gear havingsuitable operating means secured thereto and which is pi medon one ofthe pedestals. When the segmental gear is operated, it imparts a rotarymotion to the gear carried by the bushing, and the rotary motion of thebushing serves to raise or lower the shaft of the driving roller. A beltdrive is provided for the driving roller and is so positioned as to betightened when the roller is lowered to engage with the flask.

Apparatus embodying features of my invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawing, forming a part of this application wherein Fig. 1is a front elevation of the apparatus, with parts of the flask brokenaway;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II of Fig. 1;

gig. 3 is an end elevation of the apparatus; an

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation of one of the idler rollers removed fromthe machine.

Referring to the drawing for a better understanding of my invention, 1show, in Figs. 1 and 3, a base member 10 having mounted thereon a pairof spaced pedestals 11 and 12. A pair of idler rollers 13 and 14 eachcomprising two roller members, are disposed be tween the pedestals andhave shafts 16 and 1'? carried by suitable. bearings in the pedestals.

A flask 18 containing a mold 19 may be mounted on the rollers 13 and 14.The roller 14, Fig. 4, is provided with flanges 15 which cooperate withrunners 20, provided on the flask 18 to hold the latter in place. Itwill be noted that the rollers 13 and 14 are so positioned that-theflask 18 rests on the upper periphery of the roller 13 and only slightlyto the rear of the central vertical plane thereof. The roller 14 is sopositioned that the flask 18 rests entirely against the front sidethereof, so that it acts as a stop for the flask when putting it inplace and holds it in such a position that it may be readily removedwithout lifting. At 21 is indicated a platform which may be of anysuitable design and by means ot which the flasks are rolled into placein the machine and removed therefrom.

It will be apparent from the arrangement of the rollers, that a flaskmay be rolled into place for the operation of casting without danger orfear of displacement of the mold, and after the molding operation iscompleted it may be readily removed from themachine with the espenditureof very iittlf effort By this arrangement, I am enabled to greatlyreduce the time required for casting as well the effort required toplace the flasks in position in the machine and remove them.

Arranged above the idler roller 13, and slightly forward of said roller,is a friction driving roller 22 adapted to rotate the flask 18 byfrictional engagement therewith. The driving roller 22 comprises tworoller members constructed of suitable friction material, many forms ofwhich will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. For exampde,I have found what is known commercially as friction paper verysatisfactory for this purpose. The roller 22 is carried by .a shaft 23which is journaled in bearings 24 carried by a pair of similar bushings26 and disposed eccentrically with respect to said bushings. Thebushings 26 are in turn journaled in bearings 27 provided in thepedestals 11 and 12 so as to be freely rotatable in said bearings. Withthis arrangement, upon rotation of the bushings 26, the shaft 23 may beraised and lowered and the roller 22 brought into or out of frictionalengagement with the flask 18. By placing the driving roller 22 slightlyforward of the idler roller 13, it exerts a force, when in frictionalengagement with the flask 18, tending to force the flask 18 toward theroller 14; and thus holds the flask firmly in place between the idlerrollers.

Each of the bushings 26 is provided with a gear 28 arranged on the outerend thereof. The gears 28 mesh with segmental gears 29 carried by ashaft 31 journalled in bearings 32, the latter being carried by thepedestals 11 and 12. Secured to the shaft 31 is a lever 33 which coactswith a quadrant 34 carried by the pedestal 12. The lever 33 is providedwith a latch 36 which engages the teeth of the quadrant to hold thesegmental gear 29 in any desired position and consequently determinesthe position of the shaft 23 and the driving roller 22. The shaft 23 ispreferably driven in a counter clock-wise direction as viewed. in Fig.3, by a rope belt 37 the latter being driven from any suitable source,not shown, and which is preferably arranged in a position above theshaft 23. The reason for driving the roller 22 in a counter clock-wisedirection is to cause the flask 18 to bear more tightly against theidler roller 14 in rotation. By so arranging the belt 37, it will beobvious that upon raising the roller 22, the belt is slackened and uponlowering said roller the belt is tightened.

The upward n'iovement which may be transmitted to the shaft 23 by thesegmental gear 29 and the gear 28 is sufficient to permit the mountingof a flask in position in the machine for the molding operation and toremove the flask therefrom. lVhen the flask 18 is in position, as shownin Fig. 1 of the drawing, molten metal is introduced into the mold as bymeans of a spout 38 which, as is well understood in the art, may beentered into the open end of the mold and retracted therefrom as themolding operation is carried out. lVhile the molten metal is beingpoured, the roller 22 is held in frictional engagement with the flaskand the flask is rapidly rotated. As soon as the molten metal has beenpoured the lever 33 is moved upward, s viewed in the drawing, raisingthe shaft 23 and rollers 22 free of the flask. Thus, the imparting ofrotary movement to the flask 18 and the freeing of the flask so that itmay be readily removed is accomplished by one movement of the lever 33.lVhen this has been done, the flask 18 may be readily removed from themachine and disposed of in any desired manner known to the art.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that I have devised an improvedcentrifugal molding machine wherein the molding flasks may be readilyplaced in position and removed therefrom, and wherein means are providedfor disengaging the flask and stopping the motion thereof in oneoperation.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious tothose skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptibleof various changes and modifications, without departing from the spiritthereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limita tions shall beplaced thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specificallyset forth in the appended claims.

Vhat I claim is:

1. In a centrifugal molding machine, a pair of idler rollers forsupporting a flask, a driving roller, means for imparting rotarymovement through the driving roller to the flask, and means for raisingand lowering the driving roller to permit the mounting and removal ofthe flask from said supporting rollers.

2. In a centrifugal molding machine, a pair of idler rollers forsupporting a flask, said rollers being so disposed that the flask restsupon the upper periphery of one of the idler rollers and entirely to oneside of the other idler roller, a driving roller for rotating the flask,a shaft for the driving roller, means for transmitting rotary movementto the shaft, and means for moving the shaft to disengage the drivingroller from the flask to permit the mounting and removal of said flaskfrom the machine.

3. In a centrifugal molding machine, a flask, a lower supporting roller,a lateral supporting roller so positioned as to maintain the flask onthe upper periphery of the lower roller, a driving roller arranged abovethe flask and adapted to drive said flask by frictional engagementtherewith, and means for raising and lowering the driving roller.

4. In a centrifugal molding machine, a. flask, a lower supportingroller, a lateral supporting roller so positioned as to maintain theflask on the upper periphery of the lower roller, a driving rollerarranged above the flask and adapted to drive said flask by frictionalengagement therewith, means for raising and lowering the driving rollerto free it from and engage it with the flask, a belt drive for thedriving roller and so disposed that upon engagement of the roller withthe flask the belt is tightened.

5. In a centrifugal molding machine, a pair roller, a shaft for thedriving roller, bearings for the last mentioned shaft mounted in thebushings and eccentric thereto, gear means for rotating the bushings,and means for operating the gear means, whereby the driving shaft andits roller are raised or lowered by reason of rotation of the bushings.

6. In acentrifugal molding machine,aflask, a pair of idler rollers, saidrollers being so positioned that the flask when in place for moldingrests on the upper periphery of one of the rollers, a driving rollerdisposed above the flask and adapted to rotate said flask by frictionalengagement therewith, a shaft for the driving roller, bearings for theshaft, a pair of bushings for supporting the bearings, said bearingsbeing eccentric to the bushings,

gear means carried by the bushings, a segmental gear meshing with thegear means and manually operable means for operating the segmentalgears.

7. In a centrifugal molding machine, a flask, a lower flask supportingidler roller, a lateral flask supporting idler roller disposed to therear of the lower roller so that the flask when in position in themachine rests on the upper periphery of the lower roller with its longaxis slightly to the rear of the long axis of the lower roller, afriction driving roller adapted to frictionally engage the flask anddisposed above the flask with its long axis forward of the long axis ofthe lower roller, and means to raise and lower the driving roller topermit the mounting and removal of the flask.

8. In a centrifugal molding machine, a flask, a lower flask supportingidler roller, a lateral flask supporting idler roller disposed to therear of the lower roller so that the flask when in position in themachine rests on the upper periphery of the lower roller with its longaxis slightly to the rear of the long axis of the lower roller, afriction driving roller adapted to frictionally engage the flask anddisposed above the flask with its long axis forward of the long axis ofthe lower roller, means to raise and lower the driving roller to permitthe mounting and removal of the flask, and means to drive the frictionroller in a direction to force the flask over against the lateral idlerroller.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

WILLIAM H. BEATTY.

